Science Briefing

What colonial bones can reveal

It's a tale of toil, starvation and death, set forth in messages from the grave.

The saga of life in 17th century America -- "Written in Bone" -- goes on display today at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.

Some 340 objects -- including artifacts and human bones -- are on display for two years, with discussions of how cold cases from colonial times shed light on what life was like for some of the earliest English and Africans to settle in America.